As an instructional coach, I have countless discussions with teachers on a variety of topics. One topic many agree on: teaching writing can cause anxiety. When I dig deeper into the root of their feelings, I find that their fear comes from just how much is involved—brainstorming, drafting, revising, editing—in teaching writing to elementary students effectively, not to mention the continual need to provide feedback throughout the process.
No matter what subject you teach—science, math, reading, social studies—writing is a common thread that is critical for success. Elementary students are learning how to write and respond to a variety of texts in all these subject areas. Research shows that teaching students how to do so effectively is crucial. In fact, because writing enables success in all academic areas and prepares students for college, career, and life, it remains one of the most important elements of K–12 education.
While teaching elementary students to be effective writers is a significant undertaking, there are steps teachers can take to minimize angst and optimize the experience.
Steps to Teaching Writing to Elementary Students
For many young students, writing is a new skill they are learning and practicing. And like anyone learning a new skill, students need a lot of guidance and support from an expert: their teacher. As Dr. Troy Hicks says in Achieving Writing Proficiency: The Research on Practice, Feedback, and Revision, “Guided practice is a powerful form of learning, and writing proficiency, with support, grows over time.”
If our goal is for students to grow, then we must scaffold the entire process. Use sentence frames, vocabulary banks, and graphic organizers to ease the process for new writers and those that need support. Another step teachers can take is to use mentor sentences and modeled examples to show students what the expected outcome looks like. As Dr. Hicks says, “When learning how to write, students must study mentor texts to understand the specific craft moves that highly skilled authors make in their work.” Showing students writing, instead of just talking about it, is a huge step in teaching writing to elementary students effectively.
One last step I often share with teachers is to provide feedback throughout the entire writing process. By the time the student is finished with their writing, the teacher should have read it and conferenced with that student several times. Feedback is the most important piece of the writing puzzle and without it, students will not grow as writers. Dr. Hicks writes, “ We also know that targeted writing feedback leads students to revise with intention, a key component of achieving growth and proficiency.”
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Teaching the Writing Process to Elementary Students
The writing process for elementary students works the same way as it does for older students: brainstorm, draft, revise, and edit. This process does not change. However, since students are still learning, the writing process for younger students may look a little different than the process for their secondary counterparts. Below are some strategies for each step of the writing process that show how it may look different in an elementary classroom.
Brainstorming Stage
One of the challenges younger students face when asked to write a story or respond to a prompt, is the actual conceptualization of the task. Asking a first grader to create a character and write a story without anything tangible for them to refer to is difficult. The results will be mediocre at best. Try a hands-on activity. Brainstorming a character for a story becomes more accessible for a student when they can sketch their vision on paper, or using modeling clay, create a 3D representation of their character. Take this one step further by allowing students to use items like yarn, buttons, or stickers to enhance their creation.
If students are writing an essay that involves research, provide them a KWL chart so they can organize what they know (K) about the subject, what they want to know (W), and what they learned (L) through readings and other resources. The more that students can think through their ideas, the better they will be able to tackle the next step, which is to draft.
Drafting Stage
This step of the writing process needs to be scaffolded for elementary students. In many instances, students are learning how to draft stories and responses to text for the first time. One strategy is to provide sentence frames for students to use while they draft. Filling in the beginning or end of a sentence to complete a sentence frame provides that extra support for students who are struggling to get started. You can also provide graphic organizers that allow students to structure their ideas, whether they’re writing an essay or a fictional story.
Finally, showing students examples of good writing can make a big impact when students tackle similar assignments on their own. Share these step-by-step guides, including writing examples, with your students:
- How to Write a Reflective Narrative Paragraph
- How to Write a Persuasive Paragraph
- How to Write an Expository Paragraph
Revising Stage
Revision at the younger grade levels requires a lot of teacher feedback. Students just don’t have the experience with writing yet to truly know what needs revising. This is where teacher feedback plays a crucial role in making this step of the writing process a success. A strategy to use during this step is to give students an actionable item to revise. For example, encourage students to add description to their writing to enhance the imagery and detail. By doing this, students move from the abstract step of revision to a tangible task they can accomplish.
Editing Stage
The last step of the writing process is to edit. Just as students need actionable tasks when revising, they also need actionable tasks when editing. A common strategy that is useful and encourages self-reflection is to use a checklist. A checklist is a scaffolded approach to showing students what to look for as they edit their writing. Items you may include on the checklist are: punctuation, capitalization, or sentence structure. Expand this task by allowing students to collaborate and discuss each other’s writing while using the checklist as a point of reference.
An Effective Approach to Teaching Writing
And there you have it—my best tips for teaching students to be effective writers. Remember, the key is in your approach to writing for elementary students. Don't be afraid to try new things in the classroom, like letting students use modeling clay to work out ideas before writing. If you’ve ever dreaded teaching writing like many of the educators I’ve worked with over the years, I hope the approach I've described here will help you learn to enjoy it.
Embrace the challenges that teaching writing presents. Teaching and learning is a process for both the teacher and the student, so enjoy the process together.
Essential Strategies for Teaching Writing
Here are our go-to writing strategies for students of all grade levels.
- Writing strategies for elementary students are coming soon.
- Middle school writing strategies that will foster fearless writers.
- Writing strategies for high school students that will help them master the writing process.
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